Travellers using Warsaw Chopin Airport face a double dose of operational disruption this week. On the night of 22–23 September the airport closed Runway 15/33 for scheduled works between 22:00 and 05:00 local time, forcing carriers to divert operations to the cross runway. According to EUROCONTROL’s Airport Corner and NOTAM A2716/26, the maintenance window ended on 23 September at 21:59 UTC but revealed that more extensive works are imminent. A fresh Notice to Airmen confirms that Runway 15/33 – which handles roughly 65 % of Chopin’s movements – will shut every night from 20:00 to 06:00 between 28 September and 24 October. Crews will resurface the central 1 400-metre section and upgrade lighting to EASA standards in preparation for winter operations. During the closure, wide-body traffic will be rerouted to Runway 11/29, where stricter weight-and-balance limits and displaced thresholds apply, potentially leading to payload penalties on long-haul sectors. LOT Polish Airlines has already issued a passenger advisory warning of possible delays and sporadic diversions to Katowice or Łódź during fog conditions. Corporate travel departments are being urged to monitor re-timed evening departures, especially the lucrative late-night banks to New York, Seoul and Dubai that rely on Runway 15/33’s full length. Freight forwarders are likewise bracing for knock-on effects; Chopin handles about 40 % of Poland’s air-cargo throughput, much of it in the overnight window. From a mobility-compliance perspective, longer turnaround times could interact with Schengen EES processing peaks, compounding delays for non-EU assignees. Employers scheduling same-day onboarding flights for foreign hires should verify that immigration counters remain open if arrivals slip past midnight. Airport operator PPL says the upgrade is non-negotiable to keep Warsaw in the CAT III category for low-visibility. After October the works shift to the taxiway network, but further night closures are pencilled in for November; an updated slot coordination file is expected next week.
